Brain, v. [as in "to brain"]: To rebuke bluntly, but not pointedly; to dispel a source of error in an opponent.
Ambrose BierceThe slightest acquaintance with history shows that powerful republics are the most warlike and unscrupulous of nations.
Ambrose BiercePANTOMIME, n. A play in which the story is told without violence to the language. The least disagreeable form of dramatic action.
Ambrose Bierce